Sexualized war violence: new resolution diminishes survivors’ rights
In answering this question, it’s worth taking a look at how the resolution came about. Back in October 2000, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1325 on “Women, Peace and Security”, and, through seven subsequent resolutions, established an agenda for protecting women and girls during armed conflicts. Towards the end of the summer of 2018, the German government announced its intention to put forward another resolution to the UN Security Council designed, as the government itself framed it, to plug “normative gaps”.
It asserted that specific attention should also be paid to providing holistic support to survivors. Their rights, interests and needs should come first and foremost. And, indeed, far-reaching guarantees can be found in the initial draft resolution: the draft envisaged, for example, not just providing survivors with medical care, psycho-social counselling, legal advice and ensuring their economic survival. It also called on member states to render sexual and reproductive health services to survivors – including emergency contraception, safe abortions as well as the prevention and treatment of HIV.
Reproductive health becomes a bargaining chip
In calling for this, the German government found itself on thin ice, however. Since coming into office, the Trump administration has sought to curtail the reproductive rights of women and girls. One of its actions has been to cut funding to non-governmental organizations that offer abortion counselling and services. Hardly surprising, then, that the USA vehemently balked at these calls. During the pre-negotiation phase, the resolution text was consistently diluted. In the end, the USA threatened to veto the entire resolution, causing any guaranteed access to reproductive health services for survivors to be dropped.
Women’s rights organizations had issued a joint statement warning in advance of such an outcome. medica mondiale and other activists had recommended focusing on implementing resolutions that were already in place, arguing that adopting new, normative resolutions would not resolve the issue of sluggish implementation. In light of the increased hardline misogynistic stances in the Security Council, the organizations asserted that there was also a danger of a weak resolution text ultimately being adopted. And, indeed, the now-adopted resolution falls short of what had been agreed.
No rights over one’s own body
The political signal being sent is fatal – especially given the pressure currently being exerted on women’s rights across the globe. On the one hand, the Trump administration has seen its position strengthened and the “Women, Peace and Security” agenda ultimately weakened. On the other, it sends a devastating message to survivors. Even after being raped, women and girls are not afforded the right to determine what to do with their own bodies. They once more find themselves in a helpless situation that, in all probability, will aggravate the trauma they have experienced. What remedies do those affected have to activate their own resources and regain control over their own lives as well as trust in themselves and others?
The German government would have been better advised to break off the negotiations. Whilst this would have meant waiving their own resolution, it would nevertheless have sent a strong signal on the rights of survivors. Instead of insisting on the resolution, the German government could have plowed much-needed financial resources into the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). This would have provided meaningful funding to the sexual and reproductive health of women and girls in conflict regions. Given the present outcome, such action would appear more urgent than ever.
Author: Jeannette Böhme, Advocacy and Human Rights Officer at medica mondiale e.V.
Initial publication (german) on www.dsw.org
Related Topics
Press release: "Resolution against sexualised wartime violence: Not a milestone, just a weak compromise"
Deutsche Welle: TV-Interview with Sybille Fezer on the adoption of UN-Resolution 2467
